This invention pertains to a low carbohydrate, low glycemic index, cane sugar-free sweetener comprising Lo Han Quo Extract, also referred to as Lo Han Kuo Extract, and Sucralose Liquid for use in an improved tasting ice cream, or as a sweetener for baked goods and candy.
Prior art conventional ice creams are sweetened with about 7 to 29 wt. % of natural sugars i.e. cane sugar. They also contain about 10 wt. % or more of fats. Further, the total carbohydrate content of conventional ice cream is in the range of about 19 to 34 wt. %, and they have a glycemic index of about 68, or more. A standard portion of conventional ice cream i.e. xc2xd Cup or 65 grams, has a calorie content about 200 to 300. People suffering from diabetes or who have weight problems are advised by their medical doctors to avoid eating conventional ice cream because of the detrimental effect it may have on their health.
Prior art ice cream formulations in which natural cane sugar is replaced by artificial sweeteners generally suffer from after taste problems including bitter nuances. Further, they lack the clean taste, palatability, firmness, melting, and overrun properties of the subject invention comprising a unique mixture of ingredients including a synergistic combination of non-nutritive sweeteners.
A sugar-less ice cream formula is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,675,200. While the ice cream product in said patent contains no sucrose, dextrose, fructose, or glucose, the sweetening and texture forming agent comprises polyols. There are no such materials in the cane sugar-free sweetener of the subject invention. U.S. Pat. No. 4,626,441 substitutes Aspartame (phenylketone) for conventional sweeteners, either alone or in admixture with a sweetener and a bulking agent. The unobvious and synergistic mixture of sweeteners present in the subject invention are not found in said references, nor in any other ice cream. Further, the improved taste and spoonability, along with low total carbohydrates per serving, are unique with the ice-cream of the subject invention.
The subject sweetener comprising a synergistic mixture of Lo Han Quo Extract and Sucralose Liquid is used to produce a unique low carbohydrate ice cream that is free from cane sugar. The Total Carbohydrate content of the ice cream is less than 16.1 wt. %, such as 13.6 wt. %, and the reduced calorie content is less than 1.8 calories per gram, such as 1.0 calorie per gram. The ice cream has an improved, clean, smooth taste and excellent spoonability. Softened ice cream product will become firm on being refrozen without the formation of ice crystals and without the loss of its excellent palatability and spoonability. A small synergistic amount of sweetener comprising about 0.014 to 0.018 wt % of Lo Han Kuo Extract and about 0.072 to 0.080 wt % of Sucralose Liquid is incorporated in the ice cream. This amount converts to a weight ratio of Lo Han Kuo Extract/Sucralose Liquid in the range of about 0.19 to 0.23, such as about 0.21. Unexpectedly, a mixture of these two sweeteners in said weight ratio provides the ice cream product with an improved sweet, clean taste with no after taste. Small amounts of Glycerin (0.900 to 1.100 wt %) and CC305 (0.230 to 0.270 wt %) are included to emulsify and stabilize the product. Cream and skim milk are included to provide an overall butterfat content in the range of about 8.5-9.5 wt. %. Further, there are no vegetable oils, natural cane sugar or sugar alcohol, which are ordinarily found in conventional ice cream, in the subject ice cream product.
In another embodiment, the same synergistic weight ratio of Lo Han Quo Extract/Sucralose Liquid as in the improved ice cream i.e. 0.21 is used as the sweetening agent in the manufacture of baked goods i.e. cake, and in candy.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved cane sugar-free sweetener comprising a synergistic mixture of Lo Han Kuo Extract and Sucralose Liquid for use in a low carbohydrate ice cream, and in baked goods and candy.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a natural sugar-free ice cream, which in comparison with conventional ice creams has improved taste, overrun properties, melting rate, hardness, palatability and spoon-ability.